BASSETLAW LEAGUE ROUND-UP: clinical Clipstone defy rain to leap into title contention

Clinical Clipstone Welfare defied the weather and destroyed Anston to make significant ground in the race for the Bassetlaw League’s Championship title.

Clipstone’s match at Seventh Avenue was the only one in the top flight to achieve a decisive result. All the other five ended in rain-affected draws.

And their convincing six-wicket success propelled them into second place in the table, only eight points behind leaders Farnsfield, whom they play at home on Saturday, August 6.

The decision by captain Lee Wilson to put Anston into bat quickly proved a wise one as bowlers Louis Sprigg and Mohamed Althaf Anwardeen made excellent use of the new ball.

Sprigg had opener Kalyan Ampolu caught behind for a duck, and Anwardeen also removed Ampolu’s replacement, Andrew Pickering, for nought. As the Sheffield outfit were rolled over for just 64 in 26 overs, both bowlers bagged four wickets -- Sprigg 4-20 from ten overs and Anwardeen 4-31 from 13 overs.

Wilson himself weighed in with a couple of scalps at the death, while there were also four catches behind the stumps for Jason Gorman. The only batsman to hold up Clipstone was number four Luke Hall, who top scored with 19.

The hosts lost four cheap wickets of their own in reply, with three of them falling to experienced Sri Lankan all-rounder Amila Perera (3-20), who just about made up for a rare duck with the bat. But opener Amory Holder saw them safely home by the 16th over with an unbeaten 28 (three fours).

Tabletopping Farnsfield had more reason to rue the rain for they looked to be well on their way to victory at home to Retford when the heavens opened. Despite 59 from opener Amit Jundra and 32 from Kirk Edwards, Curtis Mitchell’s side had reduced Retford to 153-7 from 42 overs, with Joe Worrall, Liam Delaney and Dave Loveridge all picking up a couple of wickets apiece.

Even less play was possible, however, in the games involving title-chasing duo Thoresby Colliery and Papplewick and Linby. Thoresby had time for just 30.1 overs at Edwinstowe, where they laboured to 92-4 against fine bowling by Simon Walton (3-29), while Papplewick entertained bottom-of-the-table Whitwell, who had made 61-3 when the weather intervened.

It was a similar story at Glapwell Colliery, where Luke Tong’s unbeaten 39 helped North Wheatley with Leverton to 96-4 before the rains came.

More action was possible at Worksop, where Notts and Arnold Amateurs were most unlucky not to secure victory after amassing a total of 295-7 and then reducing the home team to 63-6. They slid to 29-3 early on before being rescued by a superb fourth-wicket stand worth 183 between Dilhan Cooray, who cracked 128 (one six and 13 fours), and Ben Scott, who fired 82 (nine fours). Worksop’s reply struggled badly against the bowling of Craig Harrison, Jordan Finney, Scott Leivers and Oliver Pearson.

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